What kind of problems have you had with your Fuso?

[JRhetts]

I have a 2007 FM260 — bigger brother to the FG.

Fuso Problems to date [30,000 miles]:

lack of factory spec turbo boost — resulting in poorer fuel economy and lack pf power; completely(!) checked out and an entire new turbo installed under warranty; gained only 2 of the 5 psi I was light. OK performance, tho long steep hills and passing situations are a REAL challenge [23,000# long-distance cruising weight]

failed rt front shock absorber - replaced under warranty; doing fine

exhaust brake dropped off — four bolts 'spontaneously' came undone; dangled from air line but was saved in time and now is fine with new bolts that I check more often than before

short front spring travel — resulting in very hard bump-stop strikes; going to investigate new front suspension options

filters and other parts a bit pricey [unique windshield wipers $80 a pair!] but overall a very solid performer.

[Performance in mud, sand, snow and untracked alluvial fans excellent, esp. with backup of locking rear diff. Just back from 8500mi of travel in the remotest parts of the Yukon, and everything worked VERY well.]

[kerry]

I forgot to add that I replaced the clutch master cylinder around 190k miles.

[gait]

one free wheel hub didn't engage first time out (vehicle had 90,000 km on clock). It had been previously assembled incorrectly.

Currently replacing a collapsed top roller taper bearing on one kingpin. Signs of water inside the knuckle joint. I had a camber kit (eccentric outer race) fitted in wheel alignment after fitting singles about 60,000 km ago. Wheel bearings repacked about 45,000 km ago.

Struggling with local Mercedes support for parts in UK. No knowledge of the vehicle and no parts book access so have to ask Germany which takes "forever". A bit of catch 22 - no availability/delivery info until an order placed, no order until payment. I'm finding it easier and more predictable to air freight bits from Aus based on emailed parts lists. UK is ok for oil filter and similar common bits where I can supply the part number. Even heavy duty diff oil had to be ordered.

[whatcharterboat]

Hi Julian,

Unfortunately the front hubs not being assembled correctly is a common occurance ........ more than you would expect anyway and it usually happens when the guys doing the camber kits get it wrong. Was that the case with yours ???? It's a bit sad if the mechanics at the dealerships get it wrong.

Hope you are doing well.

Kind regards
John.

[gait]

Hi John,

the bad free wheel hub assembly was before I purchased the vehicle. I discovered it when the vehicle was stuck. Dealer in Queanbeyan did a meticulous job of sorting it (let me watch). You helped me work out the problem at the time.

The wheel alignment was also meticulous at Big Wheels. Two days (separate visits) for fixed price. Everything worked ok afterwards. Steering good. Tyre wear very even until king pin bearing failure. Four of my six tyres still have life in them after 60,000 km.

Since then the wheel bearings have been repacked.

Slightly concerning is the small amount of water in the knuckle joint with the failed king pin bearing, the failed bearing inner and top of knuckle joint were dry of grease and a bit rusty. Mongolia was the last river crossing. Took me a while to pick up the failure. Diff oil ok. Rear diff oil ok. I have parts for both fronts coming so I'll open up the other side to check. I have an appropriately large quantity of grease.

Drawing in the service manual was a bit innacurate - when I first exposed the king pin I thought the irreplaceable bit on the end of the axle case was stuffed. A miserably demoralising, sinking, feeling. Scrape away the grease and fortunately just the bearing. A whisky for the mind. I'm still looking for 7 of the failed rollers, hidden in the grease somewhere.

I also got a surprise at the eccentric outer bearing race until I worked out it was the camber kit.

Stuffed a couple of Toyo tyres in the process. Good news is I think they are cheaper here than Aus. Certainly cheaper than Spain which is where I originally planned to replace!

Apart from this hiccough all is good. Just come back to UK from Scandinavia. Nothing particularly challenging, just a bit of shunting on hairpins. We'll head to Morocco for the northern winter. Back to Aus next year, hopefully via Tibet and Nepal.

[gait]

PS other recent failure wasn't Canter related. The glow plug in the diesel cooker failed. Next day delivery of replacement to mate in UK didn't happen due to post code not visible on address. After 5 weeks I removed old one and found nearest equivalent off the shelf in Norway.

[gait]

Another PS

other failures were a couple of spring leaves. Front right then rear right a few thousand km later. Replace front leaf and reset springs in Hungary worked for a bit but inevitably sagged (no re-temper). Rear repair was simple leaf replace in Germany. Noticeable lean to the right will be cured with new parabolics. New springs available through Mercedes but no delivery date until payment so went with sea freight of parabolics from Aus. Due to arrive about now!